Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Lightroom performance boost - hardware or settings?

T

troutweed

macrumors member
Original poster
Aug 3, 2010
51
0
Hobart, Australia
Using Lightroom 3, I'm getting frustrated by the seemingly slow time for a 100% zoom to resolve to high res. I get the "loading" wheel spinning for up to two or three seconds. Doesn't sound like much but annoying after a while!

Just wondering if it's caused by hardware that I can upgrade (RAM, GPU, HDD?), or if it's a setting in the program I need to change.

Using a MP1.1 (2x3.0GHz)
12GB RAM
3870 video card
Files and OS on 2x 1TB WD green in RAID 0 (yes, I know it's dangerous!)
LR Cache currently on outer stripe of RAID pair. (I suspect a 60GB SSD for this might be the simple fix)
Preview set to 2048 pixels and High quality

In develop, sliders come up quicker than I can get a mouse to them, so no probs there.

Thanks in advance.
 
Last edited:
troutweed said:
Using Lightroom 3, I'm getting frustrated by the seemingly slow time for a 100% zoom to resolve to high res. I get the "loading" wheel spinning for up to two or three seconds. Doesn't sound like much but annoying after a while!

Just wondering if it's caused by hardware that I can upgrade (RAM, GPU, HDD?), or if it's a setting in the program I need to change.

Using a MP1.1 (2x3.0GHz)
12GB RAM
3870 video card
Files and OS on 2x 1TB WD green in RAID 0 (yes, I know it's dangerous!)
LR Cache currently on outer stripe of RAID pair. (I suspect a 60GB SSD for this might be the simple fix)
Preview set to 2048 pixels and High quality

In develop, sliders come up quicker than I can get a mouse to them, so no probs there.

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

From what I understand the zoom image is cpu bound...so I am not sure if a SSD will here there.
 
On a whim I just ordered a Vertex 2 60GB SSD to try. Will put OS on it definitely, but wondering if there's any good reason not to point PS scratch and LR cache to it too? I figure it will give me snappier OS, plus possibly better Lightroom performance.

I realise that regular writes CAN degrade the drive, but I'm not a heavy user, and my OS gets backed up by CCC to another drive regularly, plus TM is hourly. And really, the thing cost A$140. It's disposable as far as I'm concerned.

Am I missing something here, or will this work?
 
Last edited:
Hi, The other info missing here is your RAW file sizes your working with? & LR preference settings for RAW Cache size?
Also are you running LR in 64bit or 32bit mode
 
12MB RAW files (Canon 5D mkI)
LR version 3.4 (says 64bit at startup splashscreen, but I think 06 MP only runs 32 bit?)
Camera RAW cache set at 20GB
 
LR3 is somehow extremely fkdup atm.

Have occasianally the same issue than you with the preview. No probs with LR2.
I dont know what it is,but it is definately slower than LR2 when sorting bigger shoots.


And it STILL does not process the preview pics in the background!!!

In LR2 you could leave the machine churning big batches but not the same with LR3. It practically processes the previews that are visible on your screen,then drops the processing. When you scroll up or down,the processing starts again stalling the machine...ffffuuuu!!!


Yes,reinstals,bugreports...done.

Use the LR3 for smaller shoots but when handling full day shoots with 40-80Gigs of pics,I go with LR2.

MP1.1 4x3.00 + 4870 + 10Gb
 
troutweed said:
LR version 3.4 (says 64bit at startup splashscreen, but I think 06 MP only runs 32 bit?)
Click to expand...

Open Activity monitor and it should tell you the bit mode LR is running in under "Kind" also get an idea of the RAM being utilized.
 
Your current disk usage is bizarre in the extreme.

RAID 0 just improves throughput (which IMO isn't that limited on modern high density drives). It does nothing to improve latency.

By putting the cache in a separate partition on the same drive, you're probably slowing things down by forcing the drive heads to skip all over the place - from main partition to cache partition and back.

One thing you might want to try is to pre-render 1:1 thumbnails, so the processor isn't needed on zooms.

Lightroom is working fine for me - MP 2008 (8x2.8GHz). My files are on one drive, cache is on a Raptor 600.
 
FIrst version of Lightroom was woeful. To the point I uninstalled it and reinstalled lightroom 2. But an update solved the problem which was a memory leak or something if I remember correctly.
 
firestarter said:
One thing you might want to try is to pre-render 1:1 thumbnails, so the processor isn't needed on zooms.
Click to expand...

I'd recommend the same, render 1:1 previews first (in Library mode); after a photo (or a couple of them) has been changed, re-render previews, it won't take that much time as only the modified photos will get rendered.
 
My disk set up was just me playing around really, to see what speeds were possible. I know it's not ideal.

I have an SSD on the way for cache/scratch. Will remove RAID 0 when it arrives.

Will try the 1:1 render thing.

Thanks all.
 
Tried 1:1 render. Now, if I flip from image to image at 100% they come in sharp immediately for about 1/4 second, then go soft as it "loads", then go sharp again after the usual 1-2 seconds.

Will sort out my drives before pursuing this much further. Sigh.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back